Archived Version: August 7, 2012
An information resource for Washington voters
Sean O'Donnell
King County Superior Court
Department 29
This race will be decided in the Primary Election.
Legal/Judicial
Experience: Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Homicide Unit;
Special Assistant United States Attorney. Sean is an experienced trial
lawyer. He was part of the team that prosecuted Gary Ridgway, the "Green
River Killer," and is a recognized leader on cases involving sexual
violence against women. Sean has travelled throughout the United States
to train police and lawyers on how to investigate and prosecute cases
where juveniles are forced into the commercial sex trade.
Other Professional Experience: Adjunct Faculty, Seattle University School of Law; Chief Trainer (human trafficking) National Association of Attorneys General.
Education: BA, Georgetown; JD, Seattle University
Community Service: Children's Response Center; GRCC Criminal Justice Advisory Board.
Statement: On what issue do King County Democrats, King County Republicans, police officers, defense lawyers, and more than 30 judges agree? That Sean O'Donnell should be elected to King County Superior Court. With the most trial experience in this race, Sean will be a fair and impartial decision maker who will never lose sight of the fact that there are real people behind the legal paperwork who deserve to have their voices heard in court. The King County Bar Association has rated Sean "Well Qualified" for Superior Court.
Bi-Partisan endorsements:
Organizations: King County Democrat and Republican Central Committees; Kent, Kirkland, Federal Way and King County Police Officers' Guilds; King County Corrections Guild; King County Labor Council; Seattle Building & Construction Trades Council; SEIU Healthcare 775NW; 10 Democratic Legislative Districts.
Elected & community leaders, including: King County Councilmembers Dunn, McDermott, Gossett, Patterson, Lambert, Hague, von Reichbauer; King County Executive Dow Constantine; State Senators/Representatives: Joe Fain, Cathy Dahlquist; Jeanne Kohl-Welles, Bob Hasegawa, Mary Lou Dickerson, Steve Litzow, Velma Veloria (ret.); Mayors of Bellevue, Kent, Federal Way, Redmond, and Seattle; Seattle City Council members Burgess, Harrell, Bagshaw; Supreme Court Justice Steven Gonzalez, Judge Mary Yu; Mike McKay, Ruth Woo, Albert Shen and Judy Maleng.
| Questionnaire responses: | For Municipal League of King County |
Candidate ratings:
| ORGANIZATION |
SEAN O'DONNELL |
HONG TRAN |
| Cardozo Society |
Exceptionally Well Qualified |
Qualified |
|
Joint Asian Judicial Evaluation Committee |
Well Qualified | Qualified |
| King County Bar Association | Well Qualified | Not Qualified |
|
Latina/o Bar Association of Washington |
Well Qualified | * |
|
Municipal League of King County |
Outstanding | Very Good |
|
Q-Law: the
GLBT Bar Association of Washington |
Well Qualified | Qualified |
|
Washington Women Lawyers |
Qualified | Qualified |
Important note! Each of these organizations uses its own standards and rating terms when evaluating candidates; please check their pages for further information. We do not have ratings from all organizations for all candidates, and the reasons vary. Some evaluations may still be in process, or we might not have received them yet; some candidates may not have been offered an opportunity to participate, or they may have declined to participate. Again, please check the organizations' pages for further details.
Newspaper endorsements (click paper for details):
| NEWSPAPER |
SEAN O'DONNELL |
HONG TRAN |
| Seattle Times |
 |
|
| The Stranger |
|
Finance report:
| CANDIDATE | UPDATED | CONTRIBUTIONS | EXPENDITURES |
| Sean O'Donnell | 8/3/2012 |
$59,369.18 Loans $5,000.00 |
$49,745.55 |
| Hong Tran | 8/3/2012 |
$5,599.00 Personal Funds $1,500.00 |
$4,402.57 |
| July 24, 2012 | ||
| The Stranger | Not Qualified | |
| July 23, 2012 | ||
| Seattle P-I | King County ballots, vtr. pamphet are misleading | |
| June 29, 2012 | ||
| Seattle P-I | A bar fight over judidical ratings? | |
| Tacoma News Tribune | King Co. judicial candidate to get new rating | |
| June 28, 2012 | ||
| Everett Herald | Candidate's 'not qualified' rating baffles judges |
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As the election approaches, Votingforjudges.org will include ratings and endorsements from numerous organizations. We provide this information so that voters will be better informed about the candidates. We do not rate or endorse any candidates; the ratings and endorsements of organizations included at this site reflect the views of those individual organizations and not necessarily the views of votingforjudges.org or its sponsors.